You Deserve Nothing - Alexander Maksik [38]
* * *
They were all there except for Gilad.
“Has everyone read the packet?”
They nodded except for Colin who smirked at me. I raised my eyebrows.
“I didn’t have time, sir.”
“You didn’t have time?”
“No.”
“So why’d you show up today?”
“What do you mean?”
“Why are you here? In class today. Why’d you come?”
“It’s not like I have a choice, sir.”
I laughed. “We’ve covered this, haven’t we?”
“Just because you say I have a choice doesn’t mean I do.”
“Ah, I see. I’ll tell you what, challenge the idea. Why don’t you get up and leave?”
“Because, sir, if I get up and leave, you’ll report that to Mr. Goring and I’ll end up in detention for skipping class.”
“I won’t tell anyone.”
“How do I know I can trust you?”
“You have to make a choice Colin—you have to make a choice to trust me, in the same way you have to make a choice about staying in this class. I know you’d rather believe you’re the subject of great oppression but the fact remains that you have a choice. Despite the powerful forces you seem convinced are keeping you down, you still have a choice. That may not be the case for Abdul but it is certainly the case for you.”
Upon hearing his name, Abdul glanced up from his desk.
“Why would it be different for Abdul?” Ariel asked.
“Because, Ariel, Abdul believes in God.”
“And?”
“And Colin doesn’t.”
“And?”
“And, Ariel,” Rick said, shaking his head, “someone who believes in God might believe that God makes all their choices for them. They might believe that they’re not responsible for their actions, that it’s God who’s responsible. But if you don’t believe in God then who the hell else would be responsible for the choices we make?”
“Excuse me, Rick, but, I believe in God but I don’t believe he makes my choices for me.”
“And that’s why I said might.”
Abdul raised his hand.
“You don’t have to raise your hand, Abdul,” I said.
“Ummm, I just believe in God’s plan. God has a plan for all of us and we just, you know, live that plan.”
“So you’re not responsible for anything you do? You’re just a little puppet and God’s pulling your strings? I mean, like what you just said? God made you say that?” Hala said looking at him in disbelief.
“Pretty much, yeah,” Abdul said looking down at his desk.
“Are you kidding?”
“No,” he whispered.
“God,” Hala said in disgust. “You give us such a bad name.”
He turned to her, “What do you mean?”
“Arabs. You make Arabs look like lunatics. You make us all look crazed with, like, Korans and bombs and, God, I mean wake up!”
Abdul’s eyes were wide.
“O.K., that’s enough. Hala, surely you’ll grant Abdul the right to believe anything he wants to believe, right?”
“I guess. Maybe.”
“Good. All of this began with Colin, so let’s end it there. I’m giving you the choice, Colin. You can leave or you can stay. If you stop coming to class it will influence your class participation grade. However, I will not report your absences to the administration. A student shouldn’t come to class if he or she doesn’t want to. Frankly, arriving here without having read the material your class participation grade suffers anyway. You may as well leave. You seem to be sure you have better things to do. As I’ve said several times already, it’s your choice.”
Everyone stared at Colin. He stared at me. After a few moments he stood, took his backpack from the floor and left the room.
Lily let out a loud breath. “Oh my God.”
The door closed quietly behind him.
It was the first time a student had ever called my bluff.
Abdul shifted in his seat. Ariel’s expression suggested genuine surprise. Rick studied me. Jane smiled her shy smile. Aldo looked at Ariel for a cue. Cara tried to contain a rising laugh. Lily shook her head and said, “Dude,” in disbelief. Hala watched me and chewed on her pen.
I took the photocopies from my desk and began handing them out.
“Each of you has the same right,” I said. “I offer you all the same deal. If you feel that this class is somehow